An Amazon worker has explained her reasons for going on strike this week. She said staff are 'miserable and fed up' over issues around pay, conditions and the treatment of employees.
Workers at the Amazon fulfilment centre warehouse in Coventry are set to walk out for two days this week, on February 28 and March 2. It comes after workers made history in January by being the first employees of the online retailer to take strike action.
One worker taking part in the strike, who wanted to be known only by her first name Marie, told Coventry Live she wants to be treated 'like a human, not a number'.
Amazon have said that only a 'tiny proportion' of their workers are involved in the strike. It said in a statement that it offers 'competitive' pay and benefits.
Marie, 56, who has worked at the Coventry warehouse for nearly three years as a receive and sorts worker, claims that she is not allowed to wear her own shoes at work. She said she is provided instead with toe-protected shoes that 'kill her feet'.
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She said an offer to workers of a 50p per hour pay increase is "ridiculous". Workers are campaigning for a £15 per hour pay rate.
She said: "I work eight hours a day on a part-time basis and we are not allowed to buy our own shoes for work - standing in the shoes they give all day kill my feet, and they insist on toe protected shoes. I have metal knees since I have had a knee replacement. By the end of the day, my feet are in pain."
"The minimum hourly rate at Amazon is £10.50 an hour which goes up to £10.80 if you have been at the company for more than three years. During the pandemic, they asked us to work and people got paid an extra £2 an hour, and to give just 50p an hour after Covid is ridiculous as this is one of the richest companies pulling profits of millions, but not taking care of its staff."
Marie said when she was growing up, the family motto was "a fair day's work for a fair day's pay" and claimed that, at Amazon, the fair day's work is happening, but not the pay.
She added: "Every bill has gone up from petrol, gas, electric, food, house insurance and the pay doesn't cover the rise of bills which Amazon hasn't taken into account. During the pandemic, they asked for our help and now when we need their help, it's like it's insignificant."
She continued: "When you work 50 hours a week and above, you get either enhanced pay, time and a half or double time but I think working these hours should be a choice, not because you have to do it to pay bills. There are people working 60 hours a week and they don't see their families often so there's no work life balance; especially if they are working other jobs on top."
She claimed that workers are allowed two 30 minute breaks in a day for a 10 hour shift, one paid and one unpaid.
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She said: "There's a system that shows how many items you scan or receive or sort during the course of the day. It also shows when you're not scanning so they know when you're not working whether that's a break, toilet break or chatting to someone. If there's too many of us, they come and ask why you weren't working during the time or if you're one or two minutes late they ask why did you have an extended break."
Marie described the workforce as multinational with lots of different languages spoken but claimed the working culture and environment has changed since she joined nearly three years ago. She said she wants Amazon to listen and to be treated as 'a human, rather than a number'.
She added: "It used to be a good place to work and I used to have a laugh and a joke with people, but now people are miserable and fed up, there's no teamwork going on and everyone is out for themselves - a lot of people are unhappy."
Amazon says it offers competitive rates of pay and benefits
An Amazon spokesman said: "A tiny proportion of our workforce is involved. In fact, according to the verified figures, only a fraction of 1% of our UK employees voted in the ballot - and that includes those who voted against industrial action.
“We appreciate the great work our teams do throughout the year and we’re proud to offer competitive pay which starts at a minimum of between £10.50 and £11.45 per hour, depending on location. This represents a 29 per cent increase in the minimum hourly wage paid to Amazon employees since 2018.
"Employees are also offered comprehensive benefits that are worth thousands more—including private medical insurance, life assurance, subsidised meals and an employee discount, to name a few.
